Optimism isn’t all about perspective — it requires daily practice

Optimism isn’t all about perspective — it requires daily practice View our Twitter (X) feedView our Youtube channelView our Instagram feedView our Substack feedView our Spotify feed Optimism isn’t all about perspective — it requires daily practice Get curious, find purpose, and become more resilient at work Adapted from Resilient Optimism: The Science of Sustaining a Positive Mindset in Tough Times by Michelle Gielan. Published by Harvard Business Review Press. Mark stared at the single sentence on his screen while the house slept: If you don’t show progress in the next 45 days, we’re pulling funding.

He closed the laptop, then opened it again — like a lifeguard patrolling the same empty shore — hoping the words might rearrange themselves into mercy. Outside, the street was dark and still, the kind of silence that amplifies every thought. The hum of the refrigerator sounded too loud.

His phone glowed beside him, lighting a kitchen table littered with notes and cold coffee. He’d told his team they could turn it around. He’d told his wife the same.

Now even he wasn’t sure he believed it. For the first time in his career, Mark felt like he had no way forward. The harder he pushed, the less progress he made.

He could feel himself spiraling into despair, and the optimism that once fueled him was slipping away. What was happening to him happens to so many of us. When things are going well, optimism feels easy.

But when challenges pile up, that confidence begins to erode. We find ourselves overwhelmed, stressed, and exhausted, unsure how to get our footing back. I’ve seen that pattern repeated time and again in my work with professionals who are capable but struggling to access the optimism that normally helps them thrive.